TI or SA?? Help, please??

I had posted a couple of days ago about which resort to choose but got only one answer which now made a decision even worse lol.
My fiance and I have narrowed it down to either TI or SA and absolutely cannot choose.
I would love to go to Dunn's River Falls which is included in the TI...but is it worth it?
We both want to go to Rick's bar.
He's leaning more toward SA and I'm leaning more to TI. Let me say, we are not fitness buffs and SA seems more oriented toward that.
We just really need some help! We are really just split. This will be our honeymoon and will be traveling the last week of May.
Also, if we stay at SA, we will have to get a Garden Suite and if we do TI, we will stay in Superior Ocean...
If anyone has stayed at both, can you please give me your opinion?
Thanks!!
And one more thing...I've heard that the water is not as clear/turquoise and sand as white at TI as it is at SA, is this true? Can't really tell from the pics or brochures...

Last edited by aprila220; January 25th, 2010 at 07:19 AM.
Reason: adding another question

CSA is not just for sport's crazed people , it is for beach crazed people. When you see a picture of a beautiful beach , perfect for swimming and relaxing, perfect temp, soft sand, clear, large, calm and turquoise, well that is CSA. The majority of the guest at CSA do not even use the Sports Complex, but it is there if you need it. CSA has more guests but it is also very spread out , so it does not feel like it is busy, even when full. I think CTI has more of a hotel feel then CSA. IF you are into a nicer room, that is more updated, then CTI. The room at CSA are very basic, but many have beautiful terraces. Nothing fancy in the rooms at CSA, but once you go you understand how little time is actually spent in the rooms. CSA does not have an au naturel area, so if this is your thing - CTI. IF you are looking for a more romantic place with a true Jamaican feel, then CSA. Both have great food, awesome staff, strong good drinks and many included activities. If you really want to do the Dunns River trip, then stay at CTI, it is not worth the drive from CSA. Both resorts are special in their own special way, if you can not decide, pick the winner out of a hat !

I had posted a couple of days ago about which resort to choose but got only one answer which now made a decision even worse lol.
My fiance and I have narrowed it down to either TI or SA and absolutely cannot choose.
I would love to go to Dunn's River Falls which is included in the TI...but is it worth it?
We both want to go to Rick's bar.
He's leaning more toward SA and I'm leaning more to TI. Let me say, we are not fitness buffs and SA seems more oriented toward that.
We just really need some help! We are really just split. This will be our honeymoon and will be traveling the last week of May.
Also, if we stay at SA, we will have to get a Garden Suite and if we do TI, we will stay in Superior Ocean...
If anyone has stayed at both, can you please give me your opinion?
Thanks!!
And one more thing...I've heard that the water is not as clear/turquoise and sand as white at TI as it is at SA, is this true? Can't really tell from the pics or brochures...

First of all, I have not been to either of these resorts but through the research I had done and people I've talked to this is my two cents
i) Swept Away is much larger than CTI and more spread out! It does not have a a/n section, and the beach is fabulous.
ii) CTI offers more excursions and yes Dunn's River Falls is amazing (I have done it before on previous trips to Jamaica). My husband and I recently were in the same situation as yourselves, trying to decide between two paradises, and must admit that the excurisons that CTI offers were tempting. But, in the end, didn't want to choose a resort based on a few off resort activities and decided to stay in Negril and do a week at CN and a week at CSA
iii) Ricks would be a long trip from CTI so if that's important to you then I would think CSA would be better suited for you.
iv) Having been to Ochos Rios before, the beaches are lovely but don't think they compare to the beaches of Negril.

As I said, we did a ton of flip-flopping between the two and in the end realized that the more research I did, the more difficult the decision became. All are beautiful, all are different, but if you haven't been it's hard to know HOW they are different as I think it is simply the "feel" of the resort...I guess we'll know what that means when we get there!! Ha Ha One thing is for certain..Jamaica is beautiful and you are going to have a fabulous time whereever you decide to go. When are you planning to go?

I had posted a couple of days ago about which resort to choose but got only one answer which now made a decision even worse lol

I think it was my response that made you more confused. Good, I did my job then, which was to make you guys do more research.

Seriously tho, if you need to rely on strangers, as nice and well intentioned as they are, to make such an important decision as to where you two will spend your honeymoon, then wow - all I can say is I have some wonderful beachfront property in North Dakota that I can sell you at a really great price.

Ron

Reading is fundamental. It's just that for some, it's more mental than fun.

I think it was my response that made you more confused. Good, I did my job then, which was to make you guys do more research.

Seriously tho, if you need to rely on strangers, as nice and well intentioned as they are, to make such an important decision as to where you two will spend your honeymoon, then wow - all I can say is I have some wonderful beachfront property in North Dakota that I can sell you at a really great price.

Well this is my first time to any resort...and yes it is an important decision as I've never been to Jamaica so unfortunately I AM relying on other people's experiences at the resorts/attractions. All seem so beautiful...so it's a very hard decision considering the $ we are spending. If we were only going away for $200 getaway, then I wouldn't mind as much being a little less informed about what I was getting for my $200.
While Dunn's river seems very inviting, I think we have decided on CSA - yes, due in part to posted experiences (because we are wanting that more tropical/less hotel feel. I thank everyone for all their help on this...so we will be seeing you in CSA May 23-29!!! YAY!!

Might I suggest that you forget about Rick's Cafe and Dunns River Falls, which are not on resort, and focus more on what your expectations are from the resort itself. That's where you'll spend the bulk of your time.

In this regard, the four Couples resorts are anything but "cookie cutter" properties. Each has its own evolution, history, and feel. In fact, only one (Couples Negril) was actually built by Couples. They are all different, yet all have the same level of service.

You need to do a bit more homework, I'm afraid, to decide which resort is for you. I know it seems a bit Zen, but once one of the properties speaks to you, you'll know.

So we chose CSA for our wedding/honeymoon, but ironically some friends that we clued into Couples picked CTI. We are such differnt people though. We did the pics exchange and I am so happy we went to CSA. CSA felt like home to me when I was in the research stage. CTI is gorgeous, it does have Dunns river falls, but it also looks a lot like a hotel. I loved that I never saw anyone else coming or going from my atrium suite and nothing in the world would have made me give up that hammock.

I actually liked being away from the ocean, I was able to hear it and I could see it on my porch, but no one was walking by my room when I was sleeping/reading/hanging out in there.

Either way you will be happy. It is all about personalities. As I said our friends loved their choice!

oh i am not a fitness person at all and we loved csa. i don't think we "worked" out once. we swam of course but that doesn't count. they have a gym and everything there and i walked over to see it but that was the extent of it. i never once got the feeling that it was geared towards sporty people. the sports area was actually pretty deserted when i went over.

the garden suite is beautiful! so tropical and bright. there are so many nice plants and flowers all around it and i just love the shutters. given the choice of those two rooms at the same resort i would take the garden suite every time. the other rooms seem sort of generic to me. they are all very pretty but the garden/atrium/beachfront are just a level above that in my opinion.

i have never been to cti but it seems so small. i also like how csa doesn't feel like a hotel area. the beach at csa is amazing! it is HUGE so you don't feel like there are a lot of people there. you can also walk all down 7 mile beach so it is sort of endless.

you can go to dunns river falls at csa, it just isn't included. someone here might be able to tell you the price for that.

are you leaning towards cti because you feel like the room is better? the wording made it seem like you are "settling" for the garden suite. just because it is the least expensive room there does not mean it isn't good! keep in mind that csa is overall a more expensive resort so it's not like you would be trading down.

We have been to both and we are admitted CSA loyalists. Why? Probably because that is the first we Couples we went to... on our Honeymoon. I have a theory that everyone loves the Couples they visit first the most.

Since our honeymoon we've been back to CSA once and ventured to the new CTI this year. Next year we will be back at CSA, but I know that CTI will once again be in our future.

I think Negril is a great town to explore, and that gives the nod to CSA for me, but I have to say I was REALLY pleasantly surprised by both Ochos Rios and CTI.

I say flip a coin.. you can't go wrong. Both are mighty fine places to be.

I would not worry about CSA being fitness crazy. I dare say most guests never even cross the road except to go to the spa.

Keep in mind, that by the time you finally survive your wedding and get to your honeymoon, you will be utterly exhausted. You may think that you want to do a ton of excursions now... but sand gravity is a very real thing. It also is a very good thing. Do not fret and overplan.. especially your first few days.

As far as Dunn's versus Rick's... I think Rick's is more fun. Both are worth doing at least once. Neither is worth traveling way out of town for.

I *do* think that CSA is slightly better for a honeymoon.. but I am biased. Whatever you do... ENJOY!!!

We are going to Csa for the first time, and I understand how hard it is to pick one of the four resorts.

At first We were leaning toward CTI because of the excursions and price plus my brother has been and Loves it. But once I saw pictures of CSA I was hooked. I kept looking at other resorts but found myself going back to CSA, The Atruim room and the Beach called to me and it gets louder everyday.

Pick the one you keep going back to look at one more time, Pick the one you compare the others too. Either way you can't go wrong.